Hinsdale Central High School
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Hinsdale Central High School |
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| Established | 1879 |
| Type | Public secondary |
| Principal | Dr. James Ferguson |
| Faculty | 210 |
| Students | 2,465 |
| Grades | 9–12 |
| Location | 5500 S. Grant St. Hinsdale, Illinois USA |
| Campus | Suburban |
| Colors | Red, White |
| Mascot | Red Devils |
| Yearbook | El Diablo |
| Newspaper | Devil's Advocate |
| Website | central.hinsdale86.org/ |
Hinsdale Central High School, or HCHS, and locally referred to as "Central," is a public four-year high school located at the corner of W. 55th St. and S. Grant St. in Hinsdale, Illinois, a western suburb of Chicago, Illinois, in the United States. It is part of Hinsdale Township High School District No. 86, which also includes Hinsdale South High School.
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[edit] History
Hinsdale High School was established in 1879 when community members began to see the need for education beyond eighth grade for their children. The first students, Anish Munagala, Alice Warren, Minnie Hinds, Grace Redfield, and Florence Webster, were graduated in 1883. In this period, there were five teachers, including the principal, teaching about 120 students in grades 1 - 12. All twelve grades shared the ca. 1866 schoolhouse at Garfield and Third Streets, built by William Robbins to serve the community he was developing.
In 1894 the school building burned, and was replaced by a new building on the same site. In 1911 the school district was reorganized, and the school became officially known as Hinsdale Township High School. In 1916 a new school building was completed nearby.
By the 1930's, a site for a new school to serve the growing community was purchased south of town at the corner of 55th & Grant Streets. Though a new football field was dedicated here in 1932, Depression and World War II constraints postponed construction until 1948. The current high school building as dedicated in 1950. Many additions have been added over the years, most recently, in 2004, the school underwent additional construction to alleviate crowded hallways and rebuild deteriorating parts of the building. The reconstruction a new library, extended cafeteria, and connected hallways greatly opening up the campus and improving the flow of traffic.
By the 1960's, two additional school sites were purchased. Hinsdale South High School opened in 1965 a the corner of Clarendon Hills Road and 75th Street in Darien. It was then that the word "Central" was added to the name of the school. The other property at the corner of Midwest Road and 31st Street in Oak Brook, for a potential Hinsdale North High School, was later determined to be not needed, and was sold. This property now forms part of the Trinity Lakes Subdivision.
[edit] Academics
In 2005, Hinsdale Central had an average composite ACT score of 25.4, and graduated 98.9% of its senior class. The average class size at Central is 20.4. Hinsdale Central has made Adequate Yearly Progress on the Prairie State Achievement Examination, a state test that is part of the No Child Left Behind Act.[1]
The staff is comprised of 210 teachers, of which 67% hold an advanced degree. Thirty percent of the faculty have more than twenty years of teaching experience. The class of 2004 included 555 graduates, 97% of which were college bound. 18 were National Merit Semi-Finalist, 18 National Merit Finalists, 29 National Merit Commended Students, 147 Illinois State Scholars. The average SAT score was a 1163 and the average ACT score was a 24.7. In 2004 673 students took 1393 AP examinations with 88% of reported scores a 3 or higher.[2]
[edit] Technology
In recent years the administration has moved towards integrating technology into the daily life of the school. A so-called "Tablet Initiative" attempted to have every freshman from the class of 2009 purchase a tablet PC for use in classes.
Furthermore, grade notification is now available online.
[edit] Athletics
Hinsdale Central competes in the West Suburban Silver Division of the West Suburban (Silver) Conference and is a member school in the Illinois High School Association. Its mascot is the Red Devil, which has been a source of controversy among religious advocates. A commonly held (though untrue) belief is that there was a proposal to change the mascot to the Flamers. The school offers 23 varsity sports for men and women and has won 72 state championships, the second most of any high school in Illinois. Central's main sports rivals are sister school Hinsdale South High School and Lyons Township High School. The annual Hinsdale Central vs. Hinsdale South football game almost always has sellout crowds and is annually one of the most popular high school football games (based upon attendance) in the Chicagoland area.
Hinsdale Central's best teams have traditionally been men's and women's tennis, men's gymnastics, and men's and women's swimming. The men's tennis team has won the conference championship for 48 consecutive years and has won 17 team state championships, second only to New Trier (18). The women's tennis team has won 8 team state championships, tied with New Trier for most in the state. The mens gymnastics team has won 9 team state championships, the most in the state. The men's swimming team has won 17 team state championships, second again to New Trier (18). The women's swimming team has won 7 team state championships, second to New Trier (10). In addition, the football team has been particularly good in recent years, making it to the Class 8A state semi-final round of the play-off bracket in 2005.[3]
[edit] Activities
The school offers more than fifty clubs, some of which have won local and state competitions.
[edit] Notable alumni
- Kirk Dillard, 1973, Illinois State Senator
- Dennis Keller, 1959, founder of Keller Graduate School of Management
- Robert Nieman, 1966, three time Olympic Modern pentathlon athlete
- Marty Riessen, 1960, professional tennis player
- Bill Veeck, (attended but did not graduate from Hinsdale), Major League Baseball team owner
- Allen Pielet, 1978 opthomologist, ranked tennis player
- Ben Murphy, Actor
- John Kinsella (swimmer), 1968 and 1972 Olympian swimmer
- Cathy Richardson, 1986 actress, singer, songwriter
- Tomas Medina, 1993 magician
[edit] References
Baaken, Timothy. HINSDALE. Hinsdale, Ill.: Hinsdale Doings, 1976.
Dugan, Hugh. VILLAGE ON THE COUNTY LINE. Privately Printed, 1949.
Sterling, Tom, and Mary Sterling. HINSDALE AND THE WORLD. Hinsdale, Ill.: Sterling Books, 1997.
[edit] External links
| West Suburban Conference |
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| Silver Division: Hinsdale Central • York• Proviso West • Oak Park River Forest • Lyons Township • Glenbard West • Downers Grove North
Gold Division: Addison Trail • Hinsdale South • Morton • Downers Grove South • East Leyden • Proviso East • Willowbrook |
